Monthly Archives: November 2024
South Carolina shrimpers are in troubled waters. Here’s how the industry is seeking relief
South Carolina shrimpers are in a fight for their industry’s future. Facing pressures from foreign countries shipping in cheap, frozen catches in abundance, domestic shrimpers have been unable to compete. Bryan Jones is a first-generation shrimper in McClellanville. Before his life became centered around nets and saltwater and fresh catch, he was a vice president of a wealth management firm in Florida. The work is exhausting and the days on the deck of his trawler, the Pamela Sue, are long, Jones said. There are risks involved with shrimping — financial, environmental, physical — but he saw an opportunity to create a livelihood for his family and couldn’t resist. He joins at a time when fishermen are struggling, and more are deciding to leave the trade altogether. “The average age of a shrimp boat captain, I believe, is 65,” Jones said. “What we need is an injection of youth in the industry to sustain it.” Photos, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 11:21
Historic Cortez Fishing Village continues work despite hurricane damage
The Cortez Fishing Village has weathered a lot, but Hurricanes Helene and Milton put them to the test. “I’ve seen other storms that hurt us in different ways, but this one hurt literally thousands and thousands of people,” said Kent Nixon, a stone crab fisherman who has been part of the Cortez Fishing Village for decades. Docks were damaged during Hurricane Helene and are now being replaced. Milton also damaged the roof of the A.P. Bell Fish Company’s fish house. Clean-up continues all around the fishing village as crews and boats work on the water. Video, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 09:05
‘A friend to everybody’: Sitka man killed in bear mauling remembered by colleagues
Tad Fujioka was an avid outdoorsman whose love of fishing led him to trade the engineering field for the commercial trolling one. But Fujioka, whose body was found Wednesday north of Sitka following search and rescue efforts, the victim of a bear mauling, is being remembered less for what he did and more for the type of person he was. “I mean, everybody that knew him, liked him,” said longtime friend and colleague, Norman Pillen, president of Seafood Producers Cooperative (SPC) in Sitka. Fujioka was the board chair for SPC and a big advocate for the commercial fishing industry. He was a strong family man and man of many talents, Pillen said. Video, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 08:04
Nantucket Commercial Scalloping Season Opens; Fisherman Getting $12 Per Pound
Nantucket’s commercial scalloping season opened Friday morning with roughly 20 boats returning to the water as temperatures hovered in the 60s. But how was the scalloping itself on opening day? Naturally, it depends on who you ask. “It wasn’t that great,” said Marty Mack as he was unloading his catch at Straight Wharf. “I thought it would be a lot better because of the seed we had last year. I’ve seen a lot worse. But I’ve seen a lot better. It’s below average I’d say, I’ve been doing it 41 years and it’s nothing great right now. Where’d all that seed go? I don’t know if some of it died.” Kona Hosier and Ron Janes were getting back to the Boat Basin with their limit around the same time. “I’d say it was great,” Hosier said. “The efforts that were put forth (referring to the seed), we’re reaping the benefits now.” Photos, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 06:49
N.S. Liberals promise to establish inquiry into illegal fishing
Nova Scotia’s Liberal Party is promising to establish a public inquiry into illegal fishing if the party is elected to govern on Nov. 26. Liberal Leader Zach Churchill issued a statement Friday saying the party would also introduce a minimum-fine policy for those caught buying illegally caught lobster. There is already a maximum fine of $1 million for illegal fishing, but Churchill said more needs to be done. “We will establish a minimum fine to ensure that everybody who is buying illegal lobsters pays for putting the industry at risk,” he said. Churchill, whose Liberals are trying to unseat the Progressive Conservatives led by Tim Houston, also committed to creating a dedicated fisheries enforcement unit and a separate commercial fisheries office. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 15:56
A major fisheries advocate, Sitkan Tad Fujioka found dead in apparent bear mauling
The call that Tad Fujioka was overdue could not have come at a worse time. On the evening of October 29, Sitka and the outer coast of Southeast were being lashed by a windstorm, with some gusts in excess of 50 miles per hour. Fire Chief Craig Warren says Air Station Sitka launched a helicopter, nevertheless, equipped with Forward-Looking-Infrared (FLIR), to search an area about ten miles north of Sitka in Nakwasina Sound. Fujioka was believed to be returning to an area where he had shot a deer on Monday in much better weather and had cached part of the carcass. The shock reverberated quickly around Sitka. Norm Pillen is the President of Seafood Producers Cooperative, where Fujioka was board chair. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 11:47
Is U.S. Wild-Caught Shrimp Sustainable? The Short Answer Is Yes
U.S.-harvested shrimp is nutritious, delicious… and sustainable! The shrimp fishery has also historically been a culturally important economic engine. It provides a livelihood for thousands of U.S. commercial fishermen. U.S. shrimp are a sustainable seafood option, and the United States sets a global precedent for shrimp trawl bycatch reduction. But our nation’s shrimp industry is struggling to stay afloat and there’s confusion about its sustainability. Here are the facts about U.S. wild-caught shrimp. Most U.S. shrimp are caught in the Southeast from Texas to North Carolina. Three species—white shrimp, pink shrimp, and brown shrimp—make up the vast majority of the shrimp caught. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 10:22
New Report Suggests “Whale Psychiatrist” Trump May be Right About Wind Farms and Whales
US Bureau of Ocean Management report says whales, dolphins, birds and bats can all be injured by wind turbine construction, and offshore fishing harmed. Trump has been an advocate for keeping America clean and healthy. He has not advocated for the anti-carbon push based on pseudoscience and the rush into green energy projects put forth by environmentalists. Admittedly. the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has officials saying they have found no evidence linking offshore wind turbines to whale deaths. However, a new report from the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has just released a new report that said whales, dolphins, birds and more can be exposed to “unavoidable adverse impacts” by the construction of offshore wind farms. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 08:50
New Federal Report: Offshore Wind Farm Construction Can Harm Whales, Birds, Fisheries – >>CLICK TO READ<<
Owner of fishing trawler which sank off West Cork coast disputes finding of official investigation
The owner of a fishing trawler which sank off the West Cork coast has disputed the findings of an official investigation into the incident which concluded the sinking was due to a series of failures relating to faulty equipment, crew training, safety management and poor regulatory compliance. Instead, Wexford-based firm, R&E Fish Limited, blamed the sinking of its 24-metre vessel, Ellie Adhamh, off Bull Rock on March 28, 2021, on a collision with a naval patrol ship which was attempting to attach a towline to it on the previous evening. A report by the Marine Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB) listed 12 different factors which contributed to “a very serious marine casualty” which had put the lives of the vessel’s seven crew and rescue personnel at risk. more, CCLICK TO READ<< 07:52
Maine lobstermen worried about cuts to how much herring they can catch for bait
Fishermen in Maine say they’re dealing with a new setback: a nearly 90 percent cut in how much herring they can bring in to bait lobster. Congressman Jared Golden says he’s opposed to the limit, which would reduce the herring catch by 89 percent over three years. “What was troubling with this decision is there was no impact study done to us as fishermen, just an environmental study that was based on essentially one year of a proper study, to have implications to destroy an entire economic sector of Maine,” fisherman Ryan Raber said. Video, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 06:19
